1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a vehicle seat.
2. Description of Related Art
Some conventional vehicle seats include a seat shell having a shell structure constituting at least a part of a framework of a seat body. Further, some vehicle seats including such a seat shell are provided with an airbag device (see, for example, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2007-76642 (JP 2007-76642 A)). The airbag device is held at the outer side of a side portion of a shell seat in its width direction. The outer side of the airbag device needs to be covered, because leaving the airbag device exposed should be avoided in terms of the appearance of a seat body. Thus, the outer side of the airbag device is covered with an additional part, such as a resin molded part, to enhance the appearance of the seat body. On the other hand, when such an additional part is not provided, a pad serving as a cushion material may be extended to the outer side of a side portion of a shell seat in its width direction such that the airbag device is embedded in the pad.
However, when an additional part is provided, an attachment structure (e.g. fitting structure) configured to prevent contact between the airbag device and the additional part is required, which may cause an increase in the dimension of the seat body in its width direction. In addition, providing the additional part may cause a weight increase or a cost increase. On the other hand, when the pad is extended such that the airbag device is embedded therein, the dimension of the seat body in its width direction may be increased. This may cause an increase in the occupied volume of the seat body in a vehicle cabin space, resulting in reduction of design flexibility. In addition, the size of a mold die for molding the pad may be increased.